The 2003 Pork Cookout cooked up good food and fun at the Mower County Fairgrounds Wednesday night.

The Mower County Pork Producers served more than 600 people again this year. The Plager Building was filled from one end to the other with guests and the MCPP volunteers were kept busy at the grill outside throughout the early evening.

Money raised at the annual Pork Cookout helped fund the various efforts of the organization to promote pork, including scholarships.

Ted Frank, president, took a turn at the grill along with his successor next year, Mark Schaefer, first vice president. Both Frank and Schaefer said the organization's membership remains committed to doing what it can to promote what Schaefer called an "excellent product."

Mower County Pork Ambassador Tim Neuvirth, son of Rick and Margaret Neuvirth, rural Elkton, was on hand with Mower County Dairy Princess Heather Hill, daughter of Duane Hill and Jean Blaser of Adams.

Both Neuvirth and Hill made their debuts as ambassadors for the swine and diary industries, respectively, at the recent Adams Dairy Days celebration.

They will participate in other summertime celebrations, including the upcoming MeadowFest at Grand Meadow and then Independence Day celebrations at Lyle and Austin, where they will be part of the city's "When Country Comes To Town" activities.

Neuvirth, 18 and a Southland High School senior this fall, is the second member of his family to earn the Pork Ambassador honor. An older brother, Brian, 22, was the Mower County Pork Ambassador in 1999.

Lee Bonorden can be contacted at 434-2232 or by e-mail at :mailto:lee.bonorden@austindailyherald.com